DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 28 Nov) – MindaNews reporter Antonio L. Colina IV and photojournalist Enrimand Esmer Dejeto have been selected as fellows for the second batch of the Jaime Espina Klima Correspondents Fellowship of the Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities (ICSC).
They are among the 10 teams composed of journalists and visual storytellers chosen from among the 44 applications across the Philippines, picked through a “rigorous screening process, with input from a distinguished panel of journalists, editors, and energy and climate experts.”
They will produce compelling stories underlining the “challenges and opportunities of the country’s transition to renewable energy systems” and bringing the “realities of climate and energy transitions into sharper focus, particularly from regional and community perspectives.”
Each team will receive a story grant worth P100,000 to cover expenses, stipends, and other costs essential to their storytelling efforts.
The other fellows include Feliciano Genevieve and Ang Avon of Altermidya – People’s Alternative Media Network; Michael Philip Beltran and Geela Maryse Garcia of Mongabay; Maria Elena Catajan and Sherwin De Vera of Northern Dispatch/North Luzon Monitor; Marina Herrera and Vermarie Carranza of Radyo Natin Guimba DWTC 105.3FM; John Sebastian Sitchon and Jacqueline Hernandez of Rappler; Rjay Castor and Joshua Mendoza of Daily Guardian; Neil Ambion and Cindy Aquino of Pinoy Weekly; Lilian Tiburcio and Mark Louie Ladesma of GMA News Network; and Elvie Villarido-Manaytay and Antonio Manaytay of ZS Tribune Today/Sun Times Philippines.
Launched in 2022, the five-month program pays tribute to the late Jose Jaime “Nonoy” Espina, a veteran journalist and passionate advocate for press freedom and media workers’ welfare, who passed away in 2021.
The fellowship is supported by the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP), the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines (FOCAP), and the data consultancy firm Thibi.
According to ICSC, the fellows will attend three-day in-person learning sessions in Metro Manila from December 10 to 12, 2024, for training on energy reporting, journalism ethics, and visual storytelling. They will also receive mentorship from a roster of mentors and experts to enhance their story proposals.
The sessions will also include workshops on data journalism, photography, and media safety and consultations with experts in climate policy and renewable energy.
“The fellows’ final outputs, ranging from written articles to audiovisual stories, will be published by their respective media organizations and shared through ICSC’s platforms, contributing to a growing body of work that highlights the importance of renewable energy in the country’s development,” it stated. (MindaNews)